An Old Name Returns: Ford Unveils Escort Concept

SHANGHAI—Ford Motor Co. unveiled a new car in Shanghai at the auto show on Saturday that revives an American name, the Escort, though it isn’t clear whether the car will ever be built.

The Escort, shown in Shanghai for a potential Chinese audience, is a prototype vehicle that is based on the same chassis as the Ford Focus compact, but stretched slightly to accommodate a roomier rear seat. If Ford moves forward with the car, it would be the U.S. auto maker’s third compact sedan.

“We are not convinced that all the needs are being met with the current offerings,” said Jim Farley, the global vice president of marketing in his presentation at the Shanghai International Automobile Exhibition. “It will have more room and its content is unmatched by any car in its segment.”

Ford stopped making the Escort in the U.S. in 2002 when it was replaced by the Focus. Market research in China said the name resonates with consumers, Mr. Farley said.

Having multiple compact vehicles works well in China where the wealth levels vary widely. Volkswagen, for example, sells three compact sedans at three different price points. All of them are based on current or former Jetta models. General Motors Co. sells several compact cars through the Chevrolet, Baojun and Opel brands. Chevrolet unveiled a hatchback version of its popular Cruze at the Shanghai auto show Saturday.

Compact cars make up 60% of the new vehicle market in China, the world’s largest market. Mr. Farley said the China market for compact cars like the Escort is 5.5 million.

Ford makes the Focus and Focus Classic, which is the last generation Focus and which sells at a lower starting price and has fewer technology features.

Ford hasn’t committed to building the model, but the prototype appears to be close to a production model and doesn’t have exotic features common on pure prototypes, like overly large wheels and gull-wing doors.

Ford is playing catch-up in China, where it has just 3% market share, compared with GM, which has more than 14% of the market. Ford also is planning to launch the Lincoln brand next year in the market.